2019年经济学人 “机遇号”火星探测器失联(2)

 

For the first 56 sols, Opportunity never strayed more than ten metres from that propitious¹ landing site. It took pictures with its various cameras, ground holes with its little rasping drill, dug a trench² by spinning one wheel while it kept the others locked, measured the spectra³ of various minerals. The scientists concluded that the sediments⁴ they saw had been laid down in a salty dying sea. If that had been all Opportunity had ever told them, the mission would have been counted a great success.

前56个火星日，机遇号从未偏离过那个幸运的着陆点十米以上。它用各种各样的照相机拍照，用小锉刀钻地洞，一边转动一个轮子，一边将另一个轮子锁住，挖出一条沟渠，测量各种矿物的光谱。科学家们得出结论，他们所看到的沉积物是沉积在含盐量很高的濒死海域。如果这一切都是通过机遇号得知的，那么这次任务就算得上是一次巨大的成功。

But on Sol 57, it ventured out into the wider world.

但是到了第57个太阳日，机遇号冒险进入更广阔的世界。

Guided by pictures from satellites above, Opportunity headed for a deeper crater⁵, Endurance, a kilometre or so away. It drove down into it and looked around further, poking⁶ and prodding⁷ for the rest of the year. A human geologist⁸ might have accomplished⁹ as much or more by way of assessment¹⁰ in a leisurely¹¹ afternoon. But the nearest human geologists¹² were on another planet, and likely to remain there for some decades to come.

在卫星回传图像的指引下，“机遇号”向一公里外的一个更深的陨石坑进发。它开进洞里，四处张望，在这一年剩下的时间里不断挖刨。一个人类地质学家在一个悠闲的下午可能已经完成了或多或少的评估。但这位最接近人类的地质学家曾在另一颗星球上，而且很可能在未来几十年里继续留在那里。

After climbing back out of Endurance—no one had known whether it would be able to—Opportunity was sent off to inspect the jettisoned¹³ heat-shield that had protected it as it burned down through the Martian atmosphere, now a glinting monument on the pockmarked plain. It was not the only thing that had fallen from the sky. As it rolled on, Opportunity came across a meteorite¹⁴, its lithology distinctively¹⁵ un-Martian. Later it took a little video of Phobos, the larger of Mars’s small moons, passing as a shadow across the face of the Sun.

在耐力恢复后——无人能知道它是否能做到——“机遇号”被派去检查被丢弃的隔热罩，它在火星大气层中被烧毁时，隔热罩保护着它，现在它是火星坑洼平原上闪闪发光的纪念碑。而隔热罩不是唯一从天上掉下来的东西。随着“机遇号”继续前进，它遇到了一颗陨石，其岩性与火星截然不同。后来，它拍摄了一小段关于火卫一的视频，火卫一是火星上较小的卫星中较大的一个，它以阴影的形式掠过太阳表面。

On Sol 946, in September 2006, Opportunity reached Victoria Crater, seven kilometres from its landing site, 800 metres across. Its makers¹⁶ knew that the 90-sol lifetime they had promised for Opportunity and Spirit was conservative, a low bar to ensure some kudos¹⁷ for “mission accomplished”. But none had expected it to be surpassed by a factor of ten.

在第946个火星日，即2006年9月，机遇号到达维多利亚陨石坑，距离着陆点7公里，直径800米。其制造商明白所承诺的“机遇号”和“勇气号”90个太阳日的使用寿命较为保守，目的是先设一个低门槛以确保“任务完成”的荣誉。但没有人预料到它的使用期限竟然超预期十倍。

1 propitious   

adj.吉利的；顺利的

参考例句：

• The circumstances were not propitious for further expansion of the company.这些情况不利于公司的进一步发展。
• The cool days during this week are propitious for out trip.这种凉爽的天气对我们的行程很有好处。

2 trench   

n./v.(挖)沟，(挖)战壕

参考例句：

• The soldiers recaptured their trench.兵士夺回了战壕。
• The troops received orders to trench the outpost.部队接到命令在前哨周围筑壕加强防卫。

3 spectra   

n.光谱

参考例句：

• The infra-red spectra of quinones present a number of interesting features. 醌类的红外光谱具有一些有趣的性质。
• This relation between the frequency and the field spectra was noted experimentally. 实验上已经发现频率和场频谱之间的这种关系。

4 sediments   

沉淀物( sediment的名词复数 )； 沉积物

参考例句：

• When deposited, 70-80% of the volume of muddy sediments may be water. 泥质沉积物沉积后，体积的70-80％是水。
• Oligocene erosion had truncated the sediments draped over the dome. 覆盖于穹丘上的沉积岩为渐新世侵蚀所截削。

5 crater   

n.火山口，弹坑

参考例句：

• With a telescope you can see the huge crater of Ve-suvius.用望远镜你能看到巨大的维苏威火山口。
• They came to the lip of a dead crater.他们来到了一个死火山口。

6 poking   

n. 刺，戳，袋 vt. 拨开，刺，戳 vi. 戳，刺，捅，搜索，伸出，行动散慢

参考例句：

• He was poking at the rubbish with his stick. 他正用手杖拨动垃圾。
• He spent his weekends poking around dusty old bookshops. 他周末都泡在布满尘埃的旧书店里。

7 prodding   

v.刺，戳( prod的现在分词 )；刺激；促使；（用手指或尖物）戳

参考例句：

• He needed no prodding. 他不用督促。
• The boy is prodding the animal with a needle. 那男孩正用一根针刺那动物。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

8 geologist   

n.地质学家

参考例句：

• The geologist found many uncovered fossils in the valley.在那山谷里，地质学家发现了许多裸露的化石。
• He was a geologist,rated by his cronies as the best in the business.他是一位地质学家，被他的老朋友们看做是这门行当中最好的一位。

9 accomplished   

adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的

参考例句：

• Thanks to your help,we accomplished the task ahead of schedule.亏得你们帮忙,我们才提前完成了任务。
• Removal of excess heat is accomplished by means of a radiator.通过散热器完成多余热量的排出。

10 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

11 leisurely   

adj.悠闲的；从容的，慢慢的

参考例句：

• We walked in a leisurely manner,looking in all the windows.我们慢悠悠地走着，看遍所有的橱窗。
• He had a leisurely breakfast and drove cheerfully to work.他从容的吃了早餐，高兴的开车去工作。

12 geologists   

地质学家，地质学者( geologist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Geologists uncovered the hidden riches. 地质学家发现了地下的宝藏。
• Geologists study the structure of the rocks. 地质学家研究岩石结构。

13 jettisoned   

v.抛弃，丢弃( jettison的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He was jettisoned as team coach after the defeat. 他因这次失败被撤销了运动队教练职务。
• They jettisoned big boxes to make the bus lighter. 他们抛弃公共汽车上的货物，使车减轻重量。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 meteorite   

n.陨石；流星

参考例句：

• The meteorite in Jilin Exhibition Hall is believed to be the largest in the world.吉林展览馆的陨石被认为是世界上最大的。
• The famous Murchison meteorite smashed into the Australian ground in 1969.1969年著名的默奇森陨石轰然坠落在澳大利亚。

15 distinctively   

adv.特殊地，区别地

参考例句：

• "Public risks" is a recent term for distinctively high-tech hazards. “公共风险”是个特殊的高技术危害个人的一个最新术语。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法
• His language was natural, unaffected, distinctively vivid, humorous and strongly charming. 语言既朴实无华，又鲜明生动，幽默而富有艺术魅力。

16 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 kudos   

n.荣誉，名声

参考例句：

• He received kudos from everyone on his performance.他的表演受到大家的称赞。
• It will acquire no kudos for translating its inner doubts into hesitation.如果由于内心疑虑不安而在行动上举棋不定，是得不到荣誉的。